2008 Woodie Awards
Your Good Name Gone Bad
The Dangers of identity theft
Tricia Opegnorth
Issue date: 2/19/04 Section: News
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Identity fraud can happen to anyone. It occurs when someone wrongfully uses your personal information to open new credit card accounts, apply for loans, drain your bank accounts and even commit crimes. Over 500,000 people became victims to identity theft over the last year. There is very little you can do to prevent it, and it is undetectable until it's too late.
Imposters use information such as your name, address, date of birth, and social security number to capture your identity. The misuse of social security numbers is most responsible for the increasing trend of identity fraud according to PR Newswire magazine (Jan 2002).
Your social security number is made for no one except yourself, and shouldn't be given away to people who don't have a right to it. Anyone who has a social security number can begin establishing credit with that person's identity.
Offices that hold your information include your doctor, accountant, lawyer, loan officer, school and insurance agencies. Your imposter is not always far away from where you live. It sometimes takes only one employee to steal your account numbers and walk away with a new name.
There are often no warning signs to identity theft, but according to a Call for Action brochure, there are some reasons for concern: your monthly credit card and bank statements stop arriving, you are denied credit for no apparent reason, bills start arriving from unrecognizable companies and credit collectors try to collect debts.
In the chance that you might become a victim to fraud, notify all creditors and contact the fraud units of the three credit reporting agencies: Equifax, Experian, and Trans Union. These agencies can put alerts on credit reports to prevent further issuance of credit without your approval.
A report of the crime can also be made to the Federal Trade Commission. They maintain a secure database holding victim complaints, which helps assist law enforcement agencies in recognizing organized identity theft rings. The FTC also provides advice and referrals to other private and government agencies for further reporting.
Imposters use information such as your name, address, date of birth, and social security number to capture your identity. The misuse of social security numbers is most responsible for the increasing trend of identity fraud according to PR Newswire magazine (Jan 2002).
Your social security number is made for no one except yourself, and shouldn't be given away to people who don't have a right to it. Anyone who has a social security number can begin establishing credit with that person's identity.
Offices that hold your information include your doctor, accountant, lawyer, loan officer, school and insurance agencies. Your imposter is not always far away from where you live. It sometimes takes only one employee to steal your account numbers and walk away with a new name.
There are often no warning signs to identity theft, but according to a Call for Action brochure, there are some reasons for concern: your monthly credit card and bank statements stop arriving, you are denied credit for no apparent reason, bills start arriving from unrecognizable companies and credit collectors try to collect debts.
In the chance that you might become a victim to fraud, notify all creditors and contact the fraud units of the three credit reporting agencies: Equifax, Experian, and Trans Union. These agencies can put alerts on credit reports to prevent further issuance of credit without your approval.
A report of the crime can also be made to the Federal Trade Commission. They maintain a secure database holding victim complaints, which helps assist law enforcement agencies in recognizing organized identity theft rings. The FTC also provides advice and referrals to other private and government agencies for further reporting.